BBOP Publications Library

Biodiversity compensation policy programs such as offsetting are increasingly being expanded to the marine realm. We reviewed the literature
on biodiversity offsets and related compensatory policy to determine where marine offset policies occur. We also identified the most important
differences...

Roads can promote economic growth and social integration but they can also initiate
environmental, economic and socio-political harms. In many cases, these harms can be
considerably minimised and the road benefits maximised through proactive planning by road
engineers and effective...

‘No net loss’ is a buzz phrase in environmental policy. Applied to a multitude of environmental targets such as biodiversity,
wetlands and land productive capacity, no net loss (NNL) and related goals have been adopted by multiple countries and organizations,
but these goals often lack clear...

E J Milner-Gulland, William Arlidge, Joseph Bull, Anthony Charles, Laurent Dagorn, Sonya Fordham, Joshua Graff Zivin, Martin Hall, Jeffrey Shrader, Niels Vestergaard, Chris Wilcox, Dale Squires, Serge Garcia - Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, University of Copenhagen; University of Kent, School of Environment and School of Business, Saint Mary’s University, French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD), Shark Advocates International, School of Global Policy and Strategy, University of California San Diego, Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University, Department of Sociology, Environmental and Business Economics, University of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark, CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, Southwest Fisheries Science Centre, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, USA - January 2018

In terrestrial and coastal systems, the mitigation hierarchy is widely and increasingly
used to guide actions to ensure that no net loss of biodiversity ensues from development.
We develop a conceptual model which applies this approach to the mitigation
of marine megafauna by-catch
in...

White Paper

To date very little attention has been paid to the design and development of adequate financing and associated mechanisms to support offset funding needs across both the short and long term. Addressing offset financing is a topic of
growing relevance and importance for governments, companies and...

AN ASSESSMENT OF NEEDS, CURRENT PRACTICES AND POTENTIAL INDICATOR MODELS

Biodiversity indicators are an essential tool for understanding and managing changes in biodiversity. Efforts by the private sector to develop biodiversity indicators have often focussed on measuring biodiversity management actions rather than measuring on the ground changes in the status of, and...

Markets and Compensation for Global Infrastructure Development

The last two decades have seen humankind go on the biggest infrastructure building spree in history. Around the world, new roads, dams, mines have rapidly proliferated, primarily in developing countries and often in wilderness areas with high biodiversity values and little management of...

Holly J. Niner, Ben Milligan, Peter J.S. Jones, Craig A. Styan - University College London, Australia, Centre for Law and Environment, University College London, Department of Geography, University College London - November 2017

Biodiversity offsets are increasingly used in policy frameworks to regulate the environmental impacts of development including projects located in marine environments. Scientific knowledge gaps and other practical challenges have necessitated flexibility concerning the manner in which key...

Holly J. Niner, Ben Milligan, Peter J.S. Jones, Craig A. Styan - University College London, Australia, Centre for Law and Environment, University College London, Department of Geography, University College London - July 2017

Biodiversity offsetting is used in diverse policy contexts to reduce, halt or reverse losses of biodiversity arising from development or other uses of the natural environment. Despite increasing interest in the concept of biodiversity offsetting, relatively little attention has been devoted to...

This report summarises findings from a research study conducted during April through December 2016 gathering data on the size, scope, and direction of biodiversity offsets and compensation mechanisms in Europe. Our research scope included both European Union (EU) Member States and non-EU countries...

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species provides assessments of extinction
risk for over 80,000 species. It has become an important tool for conservation
and for informing natural resource policy and management more broadly.
Over the last 10–15 years, the role of the Red List in business...

A feasibility assessment of implementing no net loss of biodiversity in the sea

The oceans are under threat; marine species populations declined by 49% between 1970 and 2012 (WWF, 2015). Anthropogenic pressures on the marine environment have increased over the past five years, with 66% of the high seas and 77% of areas within national jurisdiction showing increased human...

Final report to Defra (project code WC1098)

Guy Duke, Kerry ten Kate - Forest Trends - March 2016

The objective of this study was to gather evidence, from established offsetting markets in the US and Australia, through structured interviews and a limited review of literature, on (1) the range and extent of costs and benefits to developers arising from offsetting regimes, (2) the effects of...

The Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP): planning policies and projects to achieve a net gain of biodiversity
BBOP Vision, Mission, Goals, Strategy, Plan
Approved by the BBOP Advisory Group and adopted by the Executive Committee on 20 January 2016...

managing biodiversity risk for conservation gains

- Cambridge Conservation Initiative - June 2015

The scale and pace of development is intensifying across the mining, oil & gas, agriculture, infrastructure, forestry and housing sectors. Such rapid and large scale expansion in commercial development threatens to irreversibly transform landscapes around the world, putting pressure on biodiversity...

This report is an outcome of an exploratory workshop held
by IUCN in October 2013, and subsequent discussions
in 2014, of a working group of relevant business and
conservation experts (see authorship and participation
on page 3). The working group was convened by
IUCN’s Global Business and...

An input paper for the IUCN Technical Study Group on Biodiversity Offsets

We assess the conditions under which biodiversity offsets benefit biodiversity and achieve no net loss, asking two key questions: i. Under what conditions do biodiversity offset approaches provide positive outcomes for biodiversity, irrespective of the concept of no net loss? ii. Under what...

An input paper for the IUCN Technical Study Group on Biodiversity Offsets

Kerry ten Kate, Michael Crowe - Forest Trends - November 2014

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the consideration of policy options by the IUCN Technical Study Group on biodiversity offsets and the subsequent Working Group, and to provide information more broadly to governments and their advisors. It is intended as a basic introduction to policy...

A Case Study (2014)

Ambatovy joined the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP) in 2006 as a pilot project. In 2009,
Ambatovy, together with BBOP, published a case study on the company’s biodiversity management and offset
work up to that point (available at http://www.forest-trends.org/documents/fi...

Strongman Mine – A Case Study (2014)

Amrei von Hase - Forest Trends - November 2014

Solid Energy became a member of the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP) and offered
the Strongman Mine II as a pilot project in 2007. In 2009, Solid Energy together with BBOP published a case
study on the biodiversity management and offset work undertaken at Strongman up to that...

Joseph W. Bull, A Gordon, E. A. Law, K.B. Suttle, E. J. Milner-Gulland - Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University, Melbourne, Environmental Decisions Group, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Department of Life Sciences & Grantham Institute for Climate Change, Imperial College London - February 2014

There is an urgent need to improve the evaluation of conservation interventions. This requires
specifying an objective and a frame of reference from which to measure performance. Reference frames can be baselines (i.e., known biodiversity at a fixed point in history) or counterfactuals (i.e., a...

Conservation is particularly difficult to implement for “moving targets”, such as migratory species or landscapes subject to environmental change. traditional conservation strategies involving static tools (eg protected areas that have fixed spatial boundaries) may be ineffective for managing...

Businesses, governments, and financial institutions are increasingly adopting a policy of no net
loss of biodiversity for development activities. The goal of no net loss is intended to help relieve tension
between conservation and development by enabling economic gains to be achieved without...

Biodiversity offsets are an increasingly popular
yet controversial tool in conservation. Their popularity lies in their potential to meet the objectives of biodiversity conservation and of economic development in tandem; the controversy lies in the need to accept ecological losses in return for...

The Final Report of the Ecosystem Markets Task Force

- Ecosystem Markets Task Force - March 2013

The Ecosystem Markets Task Force: introduction
The Ecosystem Markets Task Force is a practical, business led review of the business opportunities that arise from valuing nature correctly.
The work of the Task Force is a key commitment in the Government’s Natural Environment
White Paper, ‘The...

(French Translation of BBOP Standard)

An Overview of the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP)

BBOP - January 2013

This updated Overview document with its Principles
on Biodiversity Offsets, introduction to the Standard
on Biodiversity Offsets, and the accompanying
supporting materials have been prepared by the
Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP). Its aim is to help developers, conservation...

This report presents the findings of a research project undertaken by GHK Consulting Ltd (ICF GHK) and BIO Intelligence Service (BIO IS) for DG Environment to explore potential demand for and supply of habitat banking in the EU, and appropriate design elements for a habitat banking scheme.
The...

An update on developments related to biodiversity offsets and environmental compensation in New Zealand. The author examines a number of key issues, previously the subject of considerable debate, now characterized as appearing to have been settled, through the decisions taken by the Environment...

An international benchmarking study

Delphine Morandeau, Delphine Vilaysack - August 2012

This study by the French Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy (MEDDE) examines the implementation of offsets globally, identifying best practices in order to inform the French regulatory and methodological framework on offsets. To do this, 29 countries were surveyed (Argentina,...

French language version: This study by the French Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy (MEDDE) examines the implementation of offsets globally, identifying best practices in order to inform the French regulatory and methodological framework on offsets. To do this, 29 countries...

This document provides a brief summary of the core documents developed by BBOP and an overview of how they relate to each other. Documents summarized include the BBOP Standard on Biodiversity Offsets, its accompanying Guidance Notes, and supporting materials such as the Handbooks on offset design,...

2012 Update

2012 Update

- BBOP - June 2012

The updated Offset Design Handbook presents information on a range of issues, approaches, methodologies and possible tools from which offset planners can select the approaches best suited to their individual circumstances when designing a biodiversity offset. It describes a generic process that...

To ensure that offsets contribute effectively towards reconciling development and conservation and achieving no net loss of biodiversity, it is essential to have a clear understanding of the key ingredients are for meeting this goal. This guidance document reviews the key conditions and...

Restoration realities in the context of biodiversity offset policies

Martine Maron, et al - The University of Queensland - June 2012

The science and practice of ecological restoration are increasingly being called upon to compensate for the loss of biodiversity values caused by development projects. Biodiversity offsetting—compensating for losses of biodiversity at an impact site by generating ecologically equivalent gains...

Unpublished report to the New Zealand Department of Conservation. The Biodiversity Consultancy Ltd.: Cambridge, UK.

- The Biodiversity Consultancy - June 2012

This report has been prepared for the Biodiversity Offset Program (BOP) of the New Zealand
Department of Conservation to help advance offset thinking in New Zealand and as a contribution to the Business and Biodiversity Offset Programme1, of which BOP is a member. Given the pioneering nature of...

Rio Tinto is committed to achieving a Net Positive Impact (NPI) on biodiversity at
sites where it operates, a strategy launched at the 2004 IUCN World Conservation
Congress and reinforced at the 2008 Congress (Rio Tinto, 2008a). The Rio
Tinto ilmenite mine in the Fort Dauphin region of...

This document is one of two Resource Papers (the other is on Limits to What Can Be Offset) written to update and complement information already published in the Offset Design Handbook (BBOP, 2009) and to support the interpretation and understanding of the Principles, Criteria and Indicators being...

This document is one of two Resource Papers (the other being on No Net Loss) written to update information published in the BBOP Offset Design Handbook (2009) and to support the interpretation and understanding of the Principles, and of the Criteria and Indicators developed for the BBOP Standard on...

This report investigates the role of monitoring and compliance in securing better conservation outcomes through biodiversity offsetting arrangements under the Resource Management Act. The report provides:
* an overview of the resource consent monitoring purpose and process under the RMA;
* an...

This Standard on Biodiversity Offsets has been prepared by the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP) to help auditors, developers, conservation groups, communities, governments and financial institutions that wish to assess biodiversity offsets against the BBOP Principles, Criteria and...

from Biodiversity Risk to Competitive Advantage

Divya Narain - November 2011

As the Indian economy is moving up the growth curve, the country’s biodiversity is taking a beating. Even though legislation is in place to regulate and compensate for diversion of forests for non-forest uses, diversion and the resultant biodiversity loss continue unabated. The regulatory...

Abstract Many jurisdictions in North America use a
‘‘mitigation sequence’’ to protect wetlands: First,
avoid impacts; second, minimize unavoidable
impacts; and third, compensate for irreducible impacts
through the use of wetland restoration, enhancement,
creation, or protection. Despite the...

Introduction
Biodiversity offsets can be
defined as ‘measurable
conservation outcomes resulting
from actions designed to
compensate for significant
residual adverse biodiversity
impacts arising from project
development after appropriate
prevention and mitigation
measures have been taken’...

This paper draws on the experience of governments that have already developed and implemented biodiversity offsetting policies. It also takes into account the practical experience of businesses in putting offsets into place on a voluntary basis, including those undertaken in collaboration with BBOP...

Offset and Compensation Programs Worldwide

Madsen, Becca, Moore Brands, Kelly - Carroll, Nathaniel - April 2010

This report provides the status and trends of biodiversity offset and compensatory mitigation programs by geographical region. In each section, the report summarizes the total active programs and developing activities, and broad metrics like total known payments and land area protected or restored....

A study completed on behalf of the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme and the UNEP Finance Initiative by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

This study was jointly commissioned by the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) and the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP), to explore the following themes:
● Familiarity and awareness among the financial sector of the biodiversity mitigation...

As a result of more than 30 years practice German IMR is a compensation approach which is outstanding due to its comprehensive character and the broad scientific base and discussion. One of the core issues of this discussion has - since the beginning - been the debate on appropriate balancing and...

Technical Report for European Commission DG Environment

eftec, IEEP et.al (2010) - February 2010

This research project examined the potential use of habitat banking in the EU as an
economic instrument for biodiversity protection. This report identifies a range of
information and experience with habitat banking from around the world, from
economic theory and provides an institutional...

An estimated 66% of Victoria’s native
vegetation has been cleared as a result
growth and economic development of
State. Of the remaining 34% it is estimated
that 7.4 million hectares are located
public land and approximately 1.1 million
hectares are found on private land....

Assessment at national level of the relative importance of sites for each natural habitat type in Annex I and each species in Annex II (including priority naturalhabitat types and priority species)....

Increasingly, areas of interest for oil and gas development are also being recognized and valued for their biodiversity resources. Biodiversity, the complex web of genes, species, ecosystems and ecological processes that sustain life on Earth, provides human society with food, medicines, natural...

This Resource Paper was prepared by the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP) to help developers, conservation groups, communities, governments and financial institutions that wish to consider and develop best practice related to biodiversity offsets. It provides information on...

This Resource Paper was prepared by the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP) to help developers, conservation groups, communities, governments and financial institutions that wish to consider and develop best practice related to biodiversity offsets. It offers information on how to...

The success of a biodiversity offset will depend on ensuring that an effective institutional and management structure is in place; that financial flows are sufficient; and that systems are in place to ensure that the offset objectives are achieved. This Handbook assumes that the nature of...

To be successful, biodiversity offsets should compensate indigenous peoples, local communities and other local stakeholders for any residual impacts of the project on their biodiversity based livelihoods and amenity. They also need to deliver the required conservation gains without making local...

An overview of BBOP and the concept of biodiversity offsets, published in 2009. The document accompanied the publication of a broad set of guidance, including handbooks on offset design and implementation, issues papers, case studies and a glossary of terms. This overview presents the vision,...

The Offset Design Handbook presents information on a range of issues, approaches, methodologies and possible tools from which offset planners can select the approaches best suited to their individual circumstances when designing a biodiversity offset. It describes a generic process that offset...

This companion volume of Appendices to the BBOP Offset Design Handbook offers readers a summary of a sample of methodologies relevant to biodiversity offsets and some references on them for further reading. Some approaches are required or recommended by government policies; some are the subject of...

Biodiversity and Water Markets

- Ecosystem Marketplace - April 2009

It is widely acknowledged that well-functioning ecosystems provide reliable and clean flows of water, productive soils, healthy and balanced biota, and many other services for human well-being. It is also widely documented that today many ecosystems and the services they provide are under...

Final Report to Defra

Treweek et al. 2009 - April 2009

In 2007, the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) identified the need to explore new policy options, including market creation in biodiversity or incentives for biodiversity “such as biodiversity offsets”, particularly to reduce rates of loss of non-designated sites and...

International Approaches to Compensation for Impacts on Biological Diversity

- Leibniz Institute of Ecological and Regional Development and Berlin University of Technology - 2009

The starting point of this research project is the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Through the ratification of the CBD, member countries have made a commitment to support the conservation of biological diversity. In the sixth Environment Action Programme 2001 – 2010 (“Our Future, Our...

The Natura 2000 network comprises protected areas designated under the EC Birds and
Habitats Directives. Articles 6(3) and 6(4) of the Habitats Directive establish a robust
system of protection for Natura 2000 sites, only allowing damage from plans or projects
in exceptional circumstances. Where...

Environmental advisors and planners are frequently confronted with the issue of ecological
mitigation for losses due to development, the uncertainty over whether the proposed
compensation is adequate and how the mitigation will function over time. The advantages of
acquiring and retaining land...

Radically heightened extinction rates over the past 50 years have prompted the Convention on Biological Diversity to adopt the ‘2010 biodiversity target,’ which aims to significantly reduce global biodiversity loss by 2010. Despite the establishment of this ambitious goal, few policies have proven...

There is a tremendous opportunity today to secure biodiversity conservation and business benefits through the appropriate use of biodiversity offsets. Many companies are actively seeking partnerships with governments and conservation groups to address the environmental impacts of their activities...

The removal of invasive mammals from
islands is one of society’s most powerful tools for
preventing extinctions and restoring ecosystems.
Given the demonstrable high conservation impact
and return on investment of eradications, new
networks are needed to fully leverage invasive
mammal...

Globally, fisheries catch of non-target species has major environmental impacts, resulting in social conflict,
litigation, and fisheries closures. We use a bio-economic approach to demonstrate that compensatory
mitigation – an innovative, market-influenced approach to fishery–conservation...

Recent studies that incorporate the spatial distributions of biological benefits and economic costs in conservation planning have shown that limited budgets can achieve substantially larger biological gains than when planning ignores costs. Despite concern from donors about the effectiveness of...

Biodiversity – the array of plants, animals and micro-organisms,
the genes they contain and the functions they perform – sustains
our ecosystems. The inter-dependence of all the components
of biodiversity provides balance and stability to our life support
systems....

The case studies in this paper are provided in response to the invitation to Parties and
governments to submit information on the removal or mitigation of perverse
incentives, as requested in the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Decision
VII/18 of the Seventh Conference of the Parties:...

The need for a consistent approach to native vegetation management and retention across the State and support for Local Government during
the introduction of the Framework, were issues
repeatedly highlighted by submissions to the draft
document. In recognition of this feedback and the
technical...

The National Land and Water Resources Audit’s ‘Australian Native Vegetation Assessment
2001’ provides an analysis of clearing across Australia. Five of the 85 bioregions (areas
with similar characteristics of landscape and native plant and animal types) in Australia have less than 30% of pre-1750...

While the Framework sets a new standard for future management, significant work has occurred over the last 10 years. Our farmers and land
managers have been at the forefront of Victoria’s native vegetation management efforts. Through the Landcare, Land for Wildlife, Bushcare
and salinity programs...

Formal offsets policy in many jurisdictions now provides that the environment will gain (or
suffer no net loss) from a proposal even if the proposal will result in “acceptable” adverse
environment impacts. In order for a proposal that will have impacts (even after all usual
mitigatory measures...

Biological diversity, essential for the maintenance of life on Earth, is being lost on a global level at a rate higher than at any other time in the past, according to the UNEP’s Global Biodiversity Assessment. The same document states that in some EU Member States up to 24% of the species of...

John Ryan, the President of Land and Water Resources Inc. in Chicago, Illinois, is the
perfect example of how environmental markets are transforming the way people do
business in the US. In Ryan's particular case, not only has his business been radically
transformed, but so has his life, his...

A program of ecosystem assessment assisting in
the development of (i) baseline studies which determine the state of estuarine zones and the effects of natural and anthropogenic changes, and (ii) predictive models capable of translating information on specific discharges or general
pollutant...

Ever since the passage of the 1990 amendments to the US Clean Air act and the creation of a market
in sulfur dioxide (SO2), it has become clear that market mechanisms can be effectively used to
achieve environmental policies. But markets are neither infallible nor automatic. They have...

The Logical Framework is a management tool that aims to promote good project design and execution by clearly stating the key components, how the project is expected to work, and how success will be measured. It ensures that the whole project process is considered before the work begins thereby...

This Rapid Review of Conservation Trust Funds presents an overview of experience with
the creation, operation and evaluation of conservation trust funds (CTFs) and provides a
rationale for further investment in CTFs. The Review is not intended to replicate the
Global Environment Facility‘s...

Biodiversity is essential to maintaining the biosphere in a condition which supports human
and other lives. The 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg
recognised the urgency of action against biodiversity loss. Biodiversity offset is a mechanism
aiming to achieve no...

Resources for biodiversity conservation are severely limited, requiring strategic investment. Understanding both the economic benefits and costs of conserving ecosystems will help to allocate scarce dollars most efficiently. However,
although cost-benefit analyses are common in many areas of...

A new report from FAO says livestock production is one of the major causes of the world's most pressing environmental problems, including global warming, land degradation, air and water pollution, and loss of biodiversity. Using a methodology that considers the entire commodity chain, it estimates...

Poverty alleviation and biodiversity conservation are basic social goals and part of the policy agenda of postcolonial states and international agencies. It is not surprising therefore that a large number of programmatic interventions have aimed to achieve the two goals at the same time. These...

The survival of both indigenous peoples and much of what remains of nature lies in the ability of both sides to find common ground. However, parks and protected areas have become the focus of conflict between conservationists and indigenous peoples. This antipathy is based on differing views about...

The objective of this case study is to demonstrate an evaluation method for voluntary
biodiversity offsets. We focus on the Antamina mine, operated by Compañía Minera
Antamina S.A. (ANTAMINA). The Antamina mine is among the worlds largest copper
and zinc mines, and is located in the Andean...

State of New South Wales, Department of Environment and Conservation - July 2005

Australia is facing unprecedented challenges in conserving its unique biological wealth. In NSW we have been on a path of continued biodiversity loss for many years. Around 80 species of native plants and animals have become extinct in this state over the past two centuries with 1000 more species...

Industry faces challenges as a result of its social,
economic and environmental footprint. Since the mid 1990s, the mining industry has engaged in dialogue with environmental and social development organisations to determine how to address these challenges. Through this
dialogue biodiversity has...

Debate over the importance of biodiversity is increasing due to greater awareness of the need to protect biodiversity, the increasing presence of larger mining operations in remote, undeveloped locations, and in particular, the significantly increasing demands and pressures on biodiversity through...

Ecoregional status measures comprise a set of data about the viability, threat and conservation status of biodiversity within an ecoregion. Derived primarily from data generated by ecoregional assessments, these measures provide a snapshot of the status of biodiversity conservation, as well as a...

The discussion paper under review with respect to biodiversity offsets is one of the
documents constituting the output of the project ‘Business and Biodiversity in developing
countries higher on the agenda of Dutch companies quoted on the stock exchange:
identification of concepts and...

Environmental offsets seek to ensure that unavoidable adverse environmental impacts of
development are counterbalanced by environmental gains, with the overall aim of
achieving a net neutral or beneficial outcome. In line with sustainable development,
offsets represent one important tool for...

The task of developing bioregional planning processes which will protect biodiversity is part of
Australia’s commitment towards a society based on principles of ecologically sustainable development
(ESD). There is a wide spectrum of views about how such a society might be established, and the...

It is pleasing to see that the Environmental Protection Authority is aiming to achieve more rigour in assessing the need for and the appropriateness of particular offset initiatives. Offsets have been an important aspect of environmental management and decision making in Western Australia for many...

This submission details Victoria’s approach to native vegetation and biodiversity
protection and management on private land. Its basic assumption is that the
best biodiversity outcomes will be achieved by using a range and mix of policy
tools and mechanisms in a co-ordinated way. Legislation...

Historically the conservation community has not employed a systematic, consistent framework for measuring the status of conservation targets (species, sites, or landscapes/seascapes) (Balmford et al. 20031; Royal Society 20032). This has impeded our ability to conclusively and quantitatively...

State of New South Wales, Department of Environment and Conservation - November 2004

The conservation of threatened plants, animals and their habitats in New South Wales (NSW)
is integral to maintaining species diversity. As the diversity of species and their habitats may
be adversely affected by developments, it is important that informed decisions regarding the
impact of...

The Natural Community Conservation Planning (NCCP) program of the Department of Fish and Game is an unprecedented effort by the State of California, and numerous private and public partners, that takes a broad-based ecosystem approach to planning for the protection and perpetuation of biological...

In response to the request of the Conference of the Parties in paragraph 6 of its decision VII/30,
the Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group (AHTEG) on Indicators for Assessing Progress Towards the 2010 Biodiversity Target met in Montreal from 19 to 22 October 2004 to (i) review the use of the indicators...

What are biodiversity offsets? “Conservation actions intended to compensate for the residual, unavoidable harm to biodiversity caused by development projects, so as to ensure no net loss of biodiversity. Before developers contemplate offsets, they should have first sought to avoid and minimize harm...

Biodiversity1 offsets are conservation activities intended to compensate for the residual, unavoidable harm to biodiversity caused by development projects. Recent experience with
regulatory regimes, such as wetland and conservation banking in the USA, tradable forest
conservation obligations in...

Biodiversity1 offsets are conservation2 activities intended to compensate for the residual,
unavoidable harm to biodiversity caused by development projects. Recent experience with
regulatory regimes, such as wetland and conservation banking in the USA, tradable forest
conservation obligations in...

We reviewed stream assessment and mitigation protocols collected from throughout the
United States in an effort to identify attributes most pertinent to the Clean Water Act
(CWA) Section 404 regulatory program. We also solicited input from practitioners utilizing stream assessment protocols...

Organisms are shaped contemporaneously by ecological processes and over long periods of time by evolution. These activities have lead to the diversification of life. But is the diversity of life all biodiversity is? We argue that biodiversity is the conclusion drawn both from the variety of life...

Over the past decade, global loss of biodiversity, and the consequent economic value of ‘ecosystem services’, has been rising up the public policy agenda. We have now reached a point at which increased scientific understanding of biodiversity loss, combined with greater analysis of its causes and...

For many years, fossil enthusiasts have searched for Miocene fossils on a secluded beach south of Chesapeake Beach, Maryland. About a decade ago, without warning or explanation, a formidable chain link fence appeared on the beach, anchored at one end to the nearly vertical cliffs behind
the beach,...

This document provides interagency guidance on the special emphasis given to protection of wetlands and other aquatic resources (hereafter collectively referred to as aquatic resources) for which compensatory mitigation through restoration or creation is not feasible or scientifically viable. ...

This document provides guidance on the use of preservation as compensatory mitigation
undertaken to meet permit requirements under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and/or
Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899. The permit program requires appropriate and
practicable compensatory...

This document provides guidance on the use of vegetated buffers as a component of
compensatory mitigation plans undertaken to meet permit requirements under Section 404 of the
Clean Water Act and/or Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899. The permit program
requires appropriate and...

In recent decades, there have been several attempts at developing and using
environmental offsets as an environmental management tool in Western Australia (WA).
For example, in the 1980s and 1990s government agencies attempted to counter adverse
environmental impacts to Swan Coastal Plain...

In order to achieve our goals, the conservation community must determine the extent to
which our actions are working – and we must be able to diagnose why some actions
succeed while others do not. In recent years, there has been great convergence among
conservation organizations in thinking...

This Directive relates to the conservation of all species of naturally occurring birds in the wild state in the European territory of the Member States to which the Treaty applies. It covers the protection, management and control of these species and lays down rules for their exploitation....

Whereas it is recognized that the adoption of measures intended to promote the conservation of priority natural habitats and priority species of Community interest is a common responsibility of all Member States; whereas this may, however, impose an excessive financial burden on certain Member...

Guidance on the interpretation of habitat types is given in the "Interpretation Manual of European
Union Habitats" as approved by the committee set up under Article 20 ("Habitats Committee") and
published by the European Commission....

Most species listed in this Annex are also listed in Annex IV. Where a species appears in this Annex but does not appear in either Annex IV or Annex V, the species name is followed by the symbol (o); where a species which appears in this Annex also appears in Annex V but does not appear in Annex...

Attention to the federal compensatory mitigation
program has been growing over the years and
became heightened after the release of a National
Academy of Sciences 2001 report evaluating the success of compensatory mitigation to achieve no net loss of function of the nation’s wetland resources....

The Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) are issuing final policy
guidance regarding the use of in-lieu-fee
arrangements for the purpose of providing compensation for adverse impacts to...

This document provides interagency guidance on the use of off-site and out-of-kind
compensatory mitigation undertaken to meet permit requirements under Section 404 of the Clean
Water Act (CWA). The permit program relies on compensatory mitigation to offset unavoidable
impacts to aquatic systems...

We have created the Goldman Sachs Energy Environmental and Social (GSEES) Index by scoring companies relative to each other on metrics within the above categories. There are 30 criteria, of which 28 are objective. We have not attempted to score the industry against other industries. We find...

The objects of this Act are: to provide for the protection of the environment, especially
those aspects of the environment that are matters of national environmental significance; and to promote ecologically sustainable development through the conservation and ecologically sustainable use of...

Recovery plans for listed threatened species and ecological communities and threat abatement plans for key threatening processes bind the Commonwealth and Commonwealth agencies.
The Minister must ensure that a recovery plan is in force for each listed threatened species and ecological community....

For paragraph (g) of the definition of nuclear action in
subsection 22 (1) of the Act, a nuclear action includes
establishing, significantly modifying, decommissioning or
rehabilitating a facility where radioactive materials at or above
the activity level mentioned in regulation 2.02 are, were,...

Increasing pressures on land, the environment and society from economic development have
often resulted in conflicting and competing demands that are not always sustainable. Rio
Tinto Coal Australia (RTCA) faced such a challenge to its proposed new open cut extension
at the Warkworth Coal Mine...

In December 2003 the Government undertook a major overhaul of natural resource management institutions in NSW by passing the Natural Resources Commission Act, 2003 Catchment Management Authorities Act 2003 and the Native Vegetation Act 2003. These new reforms were built on the Wentworth Groups...

The proposed Regulation is titled the Native Vegetation Regulation 2004 (NVR 2004) under the Native Vegetation Act 2003 (NV Act). The Minister for Natural Resources is the proponent and the Minister responsible for making the Regulation....

This paper focuses on biodiversity conservation planning and how it provides a useful tool for land-use planning and impact assessment in the mining sector in South Africa. The mining sector is a major landowner and land user in South Africa,
and has considerable obligations in terms of our policy...

Insight Investment is the asset manager of the Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS plc), with
£71.8 billion of assets under management, as at 31 March 2004. 11.7% of Insight’s
investments in equities and substantial bonds holdings are in oil & gas, mining & minerals
and utilities companies.1 Insight...

The Akwé: Kon Voluntary Guidelines for the Conduct of Cultural, Environmental and Social Impact Assessments Regarding Developments
Proposed to Take Place on, or which are Likely to Impact on, Sacred Sites and on Lands and Waters Traditionally Occupied or Used by Indigenous and Local Communities...

The purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview of the changing status of the world’s biological diversity. The first sections below
provide general information on the nature and scope of biological diversity, and broad trends at genetic and species level. Subsequent sections outline the...

An Act to provide incentives and assistance to landowners in relation to the preservation and enhancement of native vegetation; to control the clearance of native vegetation; and for other purposes. This Act is published under the Legislation Revision and Publication Act 2002 and incorporates all...

This document is intended as a technical guide for Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 404 permit
applicants preparing compensatory mitigation plans. Compensatory mitigation is required to offset impacts that cannot be avoided and minimized to the extent practicable. The purpose of this document is to...

The Upper South East is now poised to benefi t from a very signifi cant investment from the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality (NAP). More than $38 million from the Australian and State Governments, along with landholder contributions will have a huge impact on salinity and fl ood...

In its comprehensive report entitled “Compensating for Wetland Losses Under the Clean Water Act,” the National Research Council (NRC) provided ten guidelines to aid in planning and implementing successful mitigation projects (“Operational Guidelines for Creating or Restoring Wetlands that are...

Human activities are making an increasing impact on the integrity of ecosystems that provide
essential resources and services for human well-being and economic activities. In particular,
biodiversity2 is being lost at an unprecedented rate,3 while global population and consumption are
growing4....

This document is a prototype guide that can be used to assess the biodiversity benefits (and
disbenefits) likely to result from a change in land use. This ‘toolkit’ aims to strike a balance between a meaningful, defensible and practical approach, and builds upon the Habitat Hectares...

Ever since the passage of the 1990 amendments to the US Clean Air act and the creation of a market in sulfur dioxide (SO2), it has become clear that market mechanisms can be effectively used to achieve environmental policies. But markets are neither infallible nor automatic. They have blind spots...

The World COnservation Union, International Council on Mining and Metals - July 2003

Economic development, social equity and environmental protection are the essential elements
of sustainable development. The nexus between economic development and the conservation of natural resources has been, in particular, a subject of recurrent debate....

This memorandum is intended to be applied to conservation bank proposals submitted for approval on or after the date of this guidance and to those in early stages of planning or development. It is not intended for the guidance to be retroactive for banks that have already received agency approval....

Assessments of the ‘quality’, condition or status of stands of native vegetation or habitat are now commonplace and are often an essential component of ecological studies and planning processes. Even when soundly based upon ecological principles, these assessments are usually highly subjective and...

A century ago in Australia food and fibre were scarce relative to the supply of habitat. Today the opposite could be argued. Governments now face the problem of encouraging landholders to provide public goods, such as habitat conservation, in the face of an economic environment that facilitates the...

The long-term survival and well-being of people depends on effective conservation of the world’s biodiversity. This requires living landscapes: landscapes that are able to support life of all
forms now and into the future. Pressures on biodiversity show no sign of abating, yet resources for...

Liverpool Bay lies in the eastern Irish sea against the coasts of North Wales and North-West England, a heavily industrialized coastline. Exploration activities carried out by BHP Billiton Petroleum during 1990 were the first to locate significant supplies of commercial oil and gas;...

In the valley floor of Kern County, California, a major habitat conservation plan has been under way for 10 years to safeguard the remaining areas of natural habitat and a number of endangered plant and animal species.
ChevronTexaco represents the Western States Petroleum Association on the...

Protecting people and the environment is at the cornerstone of ChevronTexaco’s corporate policy. Chevron Niugini has made this commitment integral to the design and operation of the
company’s Kutubu Petroleum Development Project in Papua New Guinea. This case study describes Chevron Niugini’s...

Native vegetation offsets for vegetation loss is a relatively new policy area, although wider environmental offsets, including wetland banking, greenhouse gas and others have been used for the last thirty to forty years. This study sought to investigate how native vegetation offsets can contribute...

An Act to provide for a scheme to protect and improve the environment and agricultural production in the Upper South East through the proper conservation and management of water and the initiation or implementation by the Government of the State of works and environmental management programs and...

The Bush Administration affirms its commitment to the goal of no net loss of the Nation=s wetlands. The Administration is hopeful of achieving that goal and in the near future to begin increasing the overall functions and values of our wetlands through the combined efforts of the numerous...

The NSW Wetlands Management Policy is a whole-of-government
policy released in 1996 to encourage the community and government to
work in partnership towards the ecologically sustainable conservation,
management and use of wetlands in New South Wales....

The Native Vegetation Act, 1991 (the Act) was proclaimed on 18 April 1991. The Act replaced the Native Vegetation Management Act, 1985, and controls the clearance of native vegetation as well as having a number of initiatives to assist the conservation, management and research of native vegetation...

The site must provide for the long term conservation of habitat and species. The bank is established pursuant to a legally enforceable Implementing Agreement (signed by all agencies involved). The site must be large enough to be ecologically self sustaining and/or part of a larger conservation...

Sustainable development takes a long-term view, and looks to the future effects of
what we do today. It gives priority to building a healthy nation and world to pass on
to future generations. However, population growth and changing lifestyles pose new challenges demanding fresh resolve and...

An Act relating to the conservation and sustainable management of native vegetation and the clearing of land; to amend the Soil Conservation Act 1938 and certain other Acts; to repeal State Environmental Planning Policy No 46--Protection and Management of Native Vegetation ; and for related...

The atmosphere is but one of many commons and
climate change is but one example of over-exploitation of the commons. An approach employed increasingly for coping with the problem of rationing access to the commons involves the use of tradable permits. Applications of this approach have spread to...

This document has been produced to provide nonmandatory methodological help to carry out or
review the assessments required under Article 6(3)
and (4) of the habitats directive (1) (referred to here as the Article 6 assessments). These assessments are required where a project or plan may give...

The California red-legged frog is the largest native frog in the western United States. It is
endemic to California and Baja California, Mexico. It is typically found from sea level to
elevations of approximately 1,500 meters (5,000 feet). The California red-legged frog ranges in
length from 1.5...

This discussion paper examines whether, and how,
the negative impacts of clearing native vegetation might be offset by separate actions that have positive impacts. Offset actions could include improving the management of existing native vegetation, restoring or regenerating an area of degraded...

Short contributions from the participants illustrated that Member States have made very different
progress in the identification and selection process of marine sites for NATURA 2000. The
meeting had to recognize that overall the implementation is making very slow progress. On one hand only very...

Conservation banking and mitigation banking programs in the USA provide useful examples of
the development of market-based systems for habitat, native vegetation, and biodiversity. The US
schemes, despite being operated in a range of jurisdictions, share a number of common
components – this...

None of the usual options – the market, conventional regulatory authority and customary
propriety – can meet the challenge of moving toward sustainability in a dynamic, globalizing
political economy. At least they cannot do so as usually applied and haphazardly associated.
Efforts to build a...

The purpose of this Act is to establish a legal and administrative structure to enable and promote the conservation of Victoria's native flora and fauna and to provide for a choice of procedures which can be used for the conservation, management or control of flora and fauna and the management of...

It is the policy of the NSW Government to: encourage the management of the wetlands of the State so as to halt and where possible, reverse: loss of wetland vegetation; declining water quality; declining natural productivity; loss of biological diversity; and declining natural flood mitigation....

Concerns about environmental impacts have
become widespread over the past four decades.
In most of regional Australia, these concerns have
focused on the activities of the agricultural and mining industries, as these are often the only economic activities in many regions.
...

Legal Issues and Tools

Patsy Davis - Forest Trends - April 2000

Increasing awareness of the need for action on global warming has produced a search for ways to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to sequester carbon to offset such emissions. At the present time, nations around the globe are hotly debating whether to put into force the Kyoto Protocol. To...

State of Florida - Office of Program Policy Analysis , Government Accountability - March 2000

Wetlands provide vital functions to the natural environment, including groundwater recharge, stormwater attenuation, and wildlife habitat. The
efforts of the state regulatory agencies, the Department of Environmental Protection (department hereafter) and the water management districts (districts...

The following report takes a close look at how to buy the other half of Leopold’s metaphorical
umbrella. It examines how farmers, forest landowners, ranchers, and other landowners can
help rare species while owning and using their land for economic gain. Specifically, it looks at
three public...

The first chapter of Directive 92/43/EEC, comprising Articles 1 and 2, is entitled ‘Definitions’. This chapter sets out the aim of the directive which is to ‘contribute towards ensuring biodiversity through the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora in the European territory...

Increasing awareness of the need for action on global warming has produced a search for ways to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to sequester carbon to offset such emissions. At the present time nations around the globe are hotly
debating whether to put into force the Kyoto Protocol, a...

In a world of increasing globalization and environmental degradation, management of its
most precious living resource, biological diversity, is one of the most important and critical
challenges facing humankind today. Biological diversity is the resource upon which families, communities, nations...

Emerging Markets for Storing Carbon in Forests

Forests offer one of the most cost-effective opportunities for storing or sequestering carbon. This report is directly relevant to companies in any industry - not just forest products. Indeed, there are clear co-benefits to be gained from companies interested in carbon offsets, and forestland...

The conservation of our natural biodiversity is essential for the functioning of natural systems. Aside from the intrinsic importance of conserving the diversity of species many of South Australia's economic activities are based on the sustainable use, conservation and management of...

Biodiversity has many values. At the most
fundamental level, biodiversity is the basis for
healthy, functioning ecosystems that are
necessary to maintain essential ecosystem
services. These include: soil formation, nutrient
storage and cycling, plant pollination and
pollution breakdown and...

By adopting the Habitats Directive in 1992,
the governments of the European Community committed themselves to the creation of the Natura
2000 ecological network, with the aim of conserving an extensive range of European habitat types and wildlife species. In doing so, they set in motion...

The Institute for European Environmental Policy
(IEEP), London, is an independent institute concerned
with advancing environmental policies in
Europe. This seminar has been organised on the
initiative of the Institute, in response to a perceived
shortcoming in the application of the...

A Critical Review of British Environmental Statements

S. THOMPSON , J. R. TREWEEK, D. J. THURLING - July 1997

Environmental assessment (EA) of the impacts of development is required
under the 1985 European Directive 85/337/EEC, which is implemented in Britain
primarily through the 1988 Town and Country Planning (Assessment of Environmental
Effects) Regulations. Ecology provides analytical procedures for...

The European and UK legislation on environmental assessment (EA) J as well as requiring assessment of significant ecological effects, also requires development proponents to recommend mitigation measures for adverse impacts.
Drawing on a review of proposed ecological mitigation measures in 194...

In 1995 the Biodiversity Group of Environment Australia (formerly the Australian Nature
Conservation Agency), as the designated administrative authority for implementation in
Australia of the Ramsar Convention, began the process of preparing this Policy. The
Agency was responding to...

It is the purpose of this title: to authorize the use of binding production flexibility contracts between the United States and agricultural producers to support farming certainty and flexibility while ensuring continued compliance with farm conservation and wetland protection requirements;
to...

he Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) are issuing final policy guidance regarding the establishment, use and operation of mitigation...

A conservation bank is a single parcel, or a series of contiguous or non-contiguous parcels, of habitat which is managed for its natural resource values. The resource benefits derived from this management regime are sold as "credits" to project proponents who seek mitigation opportunities to...

This report has been prepared as a reference for a variety of audiences, but the primary target is someone who is considering establishing a conservation bank. The text is addressed to that person -- when we say "you", we mean the person seriously interested in setting up a conservation bank....

This study explains why the theory of transferable development rights, runs into difficulty because of the lack of legal bases and institutions for the transfer. The problem, in brief is that while ownership rights at a domestic level can be "un-bundled" though legal agreements such as leases or...

A Review of Environmental Statements

Jo Treweek, Stewart Thompson - February 1993

The European and UK legislation on environmental assessment (EA) J as well as requiring
assessment of significant ecological effects, also requires development proponents to
recommend mitigation measures for adverse impacts.
Drawing on a review of proposed ecological mitigation measures in 194...

An Act to provide incentives and assistance to landowners in relation to the preservation and enhancement of native vegetation; to control the clearance of native vegetation; and for other purposes....